The global burden of disease is shifting from infectious diseases to noncommunicable diseases, with chronic conditions such as heart disease and stroke now being the chief causes of death globally, according to a new WHO report published today. The shifting health trends indicate that leading infectious diseases - diarrhoea, HIV, tuberculosis, neonatal infections and malaria - will become less important causes of death globally over the next 20 years.
World health statistics 2008 is based on data collected from WHO's 193 Member States. This annual report is the most authoritative reference for a set of 73 health indicators in countries around the world. These are the best available data and they are essential for painting the global picture of health and how it is changing.
"We are definitely seeing a trend towards fewer people dying of infectious diseases across the world," said Dr Ties Boerma, Director of the WHO Department of Health Statistics and Informatics. "We tend to associate developing countries with infectious diseases, such as HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria. But in more and more countries the chief causes of death are noncommunicable diseases, such as heart disease and stroke."
The statistical report documents in detail the levels of mortality in children and adults, patterns of morbidity and burden of disease, prevalence of risk factors such as smoking and alcohol consumption, use of health care, availability of health care workers, and health care financing. It also draws attention to important issues in global health, including: